1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to male coaxial cable connectors operable for electrically connecting a coaxial cable to a mating female port, and, more particularly, in a first embodiment to a male coaxial cable connector having a compression sleeve with a deformable leading end slidably disposed within an axial conduit of a body portion of the connector. In a second embodiment, a separate compression ring is disposed within the axial conduit forward of the compression sleeve.
2. Prior Art
Connectors adapted to form a secure, electrically conductive connection between a coaxial cable and a threaded female port have are well known in the art. Such prior art connectors are discussed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,217,383 to Holland et al., U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,676,446, 6,153,830 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,558,194 to Montena, U.S. Pat. No. 5,024,605 to Ming-Hua, U.S. Pat. No. 4,280,749 to Hemmer, U.S. Pat. No. 4,593,964 to Formey, Jr. et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,007,861 to Stirling, U.S. Pat. No. 5,073,129 to Szegda, U.S. Pat. No. 3,710,005 to French and U.S. Pat. No. 5,651,699 to Holliday. U.S. Pat. No. 5,879,191 to Burris, discusses prior art efforts to provide a coaxial connector which is moisture-proof and minimizes radiative loss of signal from the cable. A radial compression type of coaxial cable connector of the type generally used today, is described in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,651 to Szegda, and the disclosure and discussion of the prior art of Szegda '651 relating to radial compression coaxial cable connectors is incorporated herein by reference thereto.
While the innovative plethora of prior art connectors, some of which are disclosed above, provide improved moisture sealing and/or RF leakage characteristics, all have inherent limitations. For example, the integrity of the attachment between the cable and connector is “craft sensitive”, depending on the skill of the installer. In order to provide a secure, sealing engagement between a compression-type male coaxial cable connector and a coaxial cable, a series of steps must be performed. Installation of a coaxial cable connector on a coaxial cable requires that the end of the cable first be prepared to receive the connector. The connector is then manually forced onto the prepared end of the cable until the protective jacket and underlying conductive braid of the cable are separated from the dielectric core of the cable by engagement with a tubular shank disposed therebetween. The cable is further advanced into the connector by hand, which requires the application of substantial force by the installer, until the correct depth of insertion is attained. Finally, the connector is securely affixed to the cable by compressing the connector, again by hand, with a compression tool.
With most prior art connectors, during the compression step, the cable jacket and conductive braid are compressed against an annular barb disposed on the outer surface of the aforesaid underlying tubular shank during the final several millimeters of compressive travel. If the installer fails to completely compress the connector, especially in the final 20 percent of the compressive range, the connector may come loose. In addition, if the cable is not fully inserted into the conduit, the connector may come loose and/or the electrical connection may fail. In the above-referenced prior art patents, the compression sleeve is nondetachably attached to the trailing end of the connector body thereby recessing the trailing end of the ferrule or center post within the connector where it is not visible to an installer.
The step of inserting the prepared end of a cable into a connector such that the center post or ferrule on the connector slides between and separates the braided shielding from the dielectric layer of the cable is an art. If the trailing end of the ferrule is recessed too deeply within the trailing end of a connector, it may be difficult to achieve proper alignment in order to accomplish the intended function. Accordingly, there is an advantage to providing a connector wherein the compression sleeve may be detached from the trailing end of the connector body to facilitate visualization of the trailing end of the ferrule and enable proper insertion of the cable into the connector. Rodrigues et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 6,530,807, provides a connector that includes a connector body having a cable receiving end and an opposed connection end. A locking sleeve is provided in detachable, re-attachable snap engagement with the insertion end (i.e., trailing end) of the connector body for securing the cable in the connector body. The cable may be terminated to the connector by inserting the cable into the locking sleeve or the locking sleeve may be detachably removed from the connector body and the cable inserted directly into the connector body with the locking sleeve detached subsequently.
The skilled artisan will appreciate that it would be an advancement in the art to provide a male coaxial cable connector, particularly a connector operable for attachment to, but not limited to, F-type, BNC and RCA-type female fittings, wherein a single such male coaxial cable connector can be securely attached to coaxial cables in a conventional manner (i.e., compression) even when different cables having different outer diameters are employed.